HBO – Hoa Binh province is doing its utmost to eliminate foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) on livestock. To date, the FMD epidemic has been going on for more than 1 month, appearing in seven out of 11 localities in the province including: Hoa Binh city, Luong Son, Kim Boi, Tan Lac, Lac Thuy, Lac Son and Yen Thuy districts. Disease outbreaks have great impacts on livestock production, food safety and public health in the province.
Veterinarians in Lien Vu commune (Lac
Son district) give shots of FMD vaccine to pigs in Chay village.
According
to a report of the local agriculture and rural development sector, besides the
4 localities that have yet to detect the disease, namely Ky Son, Cao Phong, Da
Bac and Mai Chau, there are three localities, namely Luong Son, Kim Boi and Hoa
Binh city, detecting no new outbreaks after 21 days. New outbreaks are reported
in four localities (Tan Lac, Yen Thuy, Lac Thuy and Lac Son) affecting nearly
3,000 pigs, of which 634 died. According to the animal husbandry and veterinary
medicine section, the main cause of FMD outbreaks in the localities is that
local farmers have not had their pigs vaccinated for a long time. The FMD
vaccination has only been carried out on cows and buffaloes through FMD control
programs on big cattle.
Another
reason is the mechanism of spreading outbreaks. FMD is classified into the
first group of diseases in the international quarantine list, as it causes a
high mortality rate in piglets, heifers and calves. For mature animals, they
can recover after about 2 weeks if being treated well, but the rapid spread of
the disease causes huge economic losses.
The
agriculture and rural development sector is working with localities where the
disease occurs to implement urgent measures to stop the disease, and prevent it
from spreading widely. Seven affected districts and city have allocated 2.1
billion VND from their standby budgets to buy 101,300 doses of vaccine for
epidemic prevention. The animal husbandry and veterinary medicine section regularly
checks and urges the implementation of measures to localise and stamp out FMD
outbreaks, while providing instructions along with tools and human resources to
affected areas to implement anti-epidemic works effectively.
Vuong
Dac Hung, Deputy Director of the provincial Department of Agriculture and Rural
Development, said that the province aims to stamp out all FMD outbreaks and
eliminate the disease by January 25.
In late March, 29 labourers from Da Bac district were sent to work as seasonal farm workers in Buyeo county, Chungcheongnam province, the Republic of Korea (RoK). Upon arrival, they quickly settled into their jobs, enjoying good working conditions and benefits, with wages aligned with the terms of their signed contracts. The programme is now being expanded, with relevant departments and sectors actively seeking additional seasonal employment opportunities in various localities across the RoK.
Luong Son Industrial Park has invested in standardised wastewater and emissions treatment systems, enforced tight emission controls, reduced noise, dust, and solid waste, and expanded green spaces, contributing to protecting the environment and promoting sustainable development.
Hoa Binh police are collecting public feedback on amendments to the 2013 Constitution via the national identification app VNeID. This innovative approach marks a giant leap towards modernising grassroots democracy and enhancing transparency in public consultation.
A total public investment capital of 113 billion VND (over 4.3 million USD) was disbursed for a project to upgrade infrastructure and stabilise residents in the vicinity of the Da River reservoir between 2021 and the first quarter of 2025, giving a facelift to local rural areas and improving the quality of people's life.
Since the end of 2023-2024 academic year, Cu Yen Primary and Secondary School in Luong Son district has deployed e-study records for all of its 500 primary students, said the school principal Nguyen Thi Tuyen.
The Labour Federation of Hoa Binh city has actively worked to protect the rights and welfare of nearly 8,000 local workers and union members at 152 grassroots unions. Through regular dialogues, education campaigns, and welfare programmes, the federation has helped foster stable, progressive labour relations.
